Businesses offer alternative bus solution

Stoke business owners have put forward an alternative plan for a bus interchange than the one proposed by Nelson City Council that would see several storefront car parks removed.

Council is proposing that the new interchange, needed as part of the new expanded bus service launching on 1 August, will go along Main Road Stoke between Songer and Putaitai Streets.

That location provides easy access to Stoke Central Mall and has the support of Blind and Low Vision NZ and the Nelson Blind Citizens Group, however it will require the removal of three car parks and the gingko trees outside the mall.

But businesses along that stretch of road, which include cafes, a pharmacy, a dairy, and a bakery, don’t want to see their storefront parks disappear.

Council has said that if the interchange replaces the three car parks, it would turn the old bus stop outside the Countdown into four new parks, and reduce the parking time along the affected section of Main Road Stoke from 180 minutes to 60 minutes to encourage visitor turnover, but business owners say these measures wouldn’t have much impact.

“If you have a bus sitting [outside the businesses] for three minutes every half hour, that’s an hour of the day that stuff is physically being used by the buses. We lose eight hours, nine hours trading,” Squires Cafe owner Kim Hall says.

“It’s further for our customers to walk,” adds Jo Rose from Harvest Moon, a cafe and bulk foods store.

They also don’t believe that the bus passengers would be likely to be major customers.

“The majority of people who shop in Stoke, live in Stoke. We’re not a shopping destination,” Kim says. “The majority of people are going to get up and go to the [Richmond] Mall and into town.”

“We’re supportive of a better bus service,” says The Veggie Guy owner Karl Hadfield. “But it’s the placement [of the interchange] that is the problem.”

Karl says they have suggested an alternative location outside the Stoke Memorial Hall and youth skate park where there is already a bus stop.

“They’ve been measured out, they do work.”

The proposal was made to council at a meeting last Monday which Karl says was attended by 70 or 80 Stoke locals along with some elected members and council officers.

Alec Louverdis, council’s group manager infrastructure, attended the meeting and says one of the two proposed stops outside the hall was “potentially workable”.

“It’s fair to say that in our conversations with this group they made it clear they were in strong opposition to any carparks being lost outside their businesses,” he says.

“We have committed to considering these options ahead of next month’s Hearing Panel on 16 June for a final decision to be made on this issue.”

Alec adds that council’s approach throughout the process has been to “openly discuss the proposed changes with businesses in Stoke, listen to their feedback, and where possible make changes that can help alleviate some of their concerns” but not everyone believes the process has been robust enough.

Karl says a “lack of consultation” has put the businesses in their current position, fighting the proposed location.

“The decision’s already pre-determined,” he asserts. “[Council] didn’t talk to us but [they’ve] done the design work.”

However, Alec assures that a “balanced report” will be presented to elected members at the 16 June Hearing Panel so they can make an “informed decision”.

All aspects of the new public transport service, including the location of bus stops and the interchange, will be reviewed in 12 months to allow for any adjustments.